How Do You Fit a Folding Bath Screen on a Walk-In Tub?

A folding bath screen is fitted to the side wall beside the tub, not to the tub itself. The wall channel is fixed level, at a height where the rubber gasket along the bottom of the screen brushes the tub deck lightly and evenly, and the screen then pivots 90 degrees from that channel and folds flat against the wall. The Ella screen is described in What Is the 4-Fold Shower Screen on a Walk-In Tub?, and this page covers the planning, the optional 3-fold conversion and the points that decide whether the finished screen stays dry.

Plan the Fit Before You Open the Hardware

Most problems with a folding screen come from decisions made before the first hole is drilled. Work through these points first:

• Which wall. The screen mounts to the side wall beside a tub that sits in a corner or alcove, on the wall side away from any extension panel. It is reversible for a left or right installation, and it can be added after the tub is installed.
• Which width. The 4-fold screen is 44 by 42 inches. Removing one section turns it into a 32 inch wide 3-fold screen. In a 60 inch alcove where a 52 inch tub uses an extension panel, one section is removed to make the 3-fold.
• How much it covers. On a tub whose top measures about 59 to 60 inches, the 44-inch screen leaves roughly 15 inches uncovered at one end. Current screens are limited to four panels and extra panels cannot be added, so if you want the whole length closed, ask the team whether a fixed glass panel can be placed beside the folding screen.
• The swivel tray. If your tub has a swivel tray, plan the two together and position the screen so the tray can swing clear. What Are My Options If My Swivel Tray Broke or Does Not Fit? explains how the tray mounts near the door.
• The return window. A screen can only be returned uninstalled and in its original packaging within the 30-day return policy. Once it has been mounted it can no longer be returned, so check its coverage against your tub length before installing it.

Check the Parts as You Unpack

Shower screens ship in several pieces and are assembled on site. Lay everything out and look at each piece before you start. Occasionally a piece of hardware is damaged in shipping, a panel will not slide, or two frame sections show a mismatch in finish. If you find any of these, photograph the damage and the packaging and open a ticket before mounting anything. Replacement hardware ships from the Ella warehouse, as described in Four-Fold Glass Shower Screen: Damaged Hardware, the Return Window and Why Panels Cannot Be Added.

If You Need the 3-Fold Version, Convert It Before Mounting

The video on this page shows how the four panel glass door becomes a three panel door by removing one of the inside panels. Do this on the floor, before the screen goes on the wall.

1. Lay the four panel door carefully down on a soft surface.
2. Elevate the third panel from the wall side and remove the inside screw. Do the same on the other side, removing the outside screw.
3. Take any long screw you have and use it to remove the plastic retainer insert. This releases the panel connection. Do the same on the other side.
4. Go to the other end of the door and repeat the same process: remove the screw on the third panel, then remove both plastic retainer inserts. The third panel is now free and can be removed completely.
5. Compare both open ends with the video, which shows how they should look and which plastic spacer stays in place.
6. Bring in the outside panel to connect with the middle panel, keeping the spacer in place, and reconnect the hinge as shown.
7. Replace the plastic retainer insert and secure it with the same screw. Tighten securely but do not over torque. Repeat for all connections.
8. Snap the screw caps onto the top side of the door. The three panel door is now ready for installation.

Set the Wall Channel Height and Level

The panels are 1/8 inch tempered clear glass joined by PVC geared hinges, and along the bottom runs an inward-angled rubber gasket. That gasket is the seal. It should brush the tub deck lightly and evenly along its whole length, which is why the height and level of the wall channel decide whether the screen stays dry.

• Set too low, the gasket gets damaged as the screen moves across the deck.
• Set too high, water escapes underneath.
• Out of level, the gasket seats at one end and lifts at the other.

Before you commit to the fixing position, hold the channel against the wall and confirm the gasket meets the deck evenly and that the rubber is angled inward toward the tub. The drilling and fastening steps, the parts and the tools are set out in the printed installation manual that ships with the screen, and those steps should be followed exactly. Once the screen is hung, swing it through its 90 degree pivot and fold it accordion style against the wall to confirm it moves freely.

Trim the Horizontal Seal and Fit the End Cap

The horizontal seal runs along the bottom of the screen and rides on the tub deck to keep spray inside the tub. Installers cut this seal to length, and this is the one cut worth making slowly. If the seal is cut short, there may not be enough left to protect the tub deck under the end cap, and the deck at the end of the screen gets wet.

The end cap fits onto the end of the horizontal seal, holds it in place and covers the cut edge. The printed manual covers attaching it in steps 4 and 5. Let any sealant the manual calls for cure before the next shower. If a cap comes loose later, Replacing or Reattaching the End Cap and Horizontal Seal on a Folding Shower Screen explains how to refit it.

After the first shower, look along the bottom of the screen. If water shows up there, level the screen, reset the height so the gasket seats on the deck, and confirm the gasket is angled inward. For day-to-day care, clean the glass with warm soapy water and a lint-free cloth, and never use alcohol, petroleum liquids, chemical cleaners or anything gritty on the screen. More clips of the screen in use are collected in the accessory video library.

Watch: Ella's Bubbles: Three Fold Shower Screen Assembly with chapters and a full transcript.

Related Guides

• The Four-Fold Bath Screen Printed Manual: Parts Supplied, Loose Fittings, Tools and the Eleven Numbered Steps
• How Do I Replace the Bottom Gasket on an Ella Glass Shower Door?
• Why Does My Shower Screen Gasket Have a Gap and Spray Water?

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